Weak Android, Windows competition keeps iPad on top, says analyst

The
iPad will dominate because rivals have yet to offer a strong alternative, claims Deutsche Bank analyst.

Apple's new iPad will only face "benign" competition from Windows and
Android products, a Deutsche Bank analyst said today in a research note.
In a preface to the note titled "Top 10 Reasons for Apple's rally
other than the upcoming iPad announcement"--referring to Apple's rising
stock price--analyst Chris Whitmore cited continued Apple
tablet
dominance "due to relatively benign competition from [Android] tablets
and our concerns of a slow ramp of Windows tablets later this year."
Deutsche Bank rates Apple a "Buy" with a price target of $600.
The
reference to a slow ramp of Windows 8 tablets (expected late this year
or early next year) is a theme other analysts have latched onto. For
instance, Piper Jaffray analyst Gus Richard believes that Windows 8 will be "late and buggy." All of this negativity continues despite Microsoft's successful release of the Consumer Preview last week.

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Whitmore went on to say that "our analysis shows that on
average iPad and iPhone product announcements in themselves don't have a
meaningful, lasting impact on Apple's stock price." And listed reasons,
other than the upcoming rollout of the new iPad, for Apple's strength.
Reasons for Apple's stock price rise, according Deutsche Bank, include:

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